Sentiment has soured ahead of the key inflation data that is due ahead of the market open on Friday, with the index futures pointing to a modestly lower opening. A fairly benign data could keep the upward trajectory intact ahead of next week’s key labor market data. Stocks are on track to finish September, a seasonally weaker month, on a positive note, and election uncertainty could weigh down on the market in the upcoming month. The focus would shift to the third-quarter reporting season in the latter half of October.
Futures
Performance (+/-)
Nasdaq 100
-0.18%
S&P 500
-0.07%
Dow
-0.03%
R2K
+0.31%
In premarket trading on Friday, the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (NYSE:SPY) edged up 0.03% to $572.46 and the Invesco QQQ ETF (NASDAQ:QQQ) fell 0.08% to $489.09, according to Benzinga Pro data.
Cues From Last Session:
U.S. stocks advanced on Thursday as traders digested a slew of economic data, Chinese stimulus that set the Asian markets on fire and Micron Technology, Inc.’s (NASDAQ:MU) earnings. A sharp drawdown in the shares of Super Micro Computer, Inc. (NASDAQ:SMCI) on the back of the news of a Department of Justice probe tempered optimism toward the tech stocks.
The major indices opened sharply higher after separate reports showed jobless claims fell in the recent reporting week, durable goods orders remained flat, belying expectations for a decline, and the second-quarter GDP data was left unrevised at 3%.
The indices squandered the early gains but remained mostly above the unchanged line for the rest of the session before closing higher for the day.
The S&P 500 scored another record intraday and closing highs, with nine of the 11 S&P 500 sector classes closing higher. Material stocks advanced notably, while energy stocks came under significant selling pressure.
Index
Performance (+/)
Value
Nasdaq Composite
+0.60%
18,190.29
S&P 500 Index
+0.40%
5,745.37
Dow Industrials
+0.62%
42,175.11
Russell 2000
+0.57%
2,209.87
Insights From Analysts:
LPL Chief Economist Jeffrey Roach said in a note he anticipates ...
